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Martin Frank: Sanchez locked in as the starter

MARTIN FRANK
Published 5:10 a.m. ET Dec. 7, 2014

Eagles quarterback Mark Sanchez (3) appears to be locked in as the starter for the rest of the season with Nick Foles still healing up from a cracked clavicle he suffered against the Houston Texans on Nov. 2.(Photo: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports)

With each passing week, it’s becoming clearer that Mark Sanchez will remain the Eagles’ quarterback for the rest of the season.

Nick Foles is simply running out of time to get healthy, and then get into a rhythm with the offense before the season ends and the playoffs start. Foles suffered a cracked clavicle against the Houston Texans on Nov. 2, and it was estimated that he would need 6-8 weeks to heal.

Foles had another CT scan on Nov. 28, and while the bone is healing, he wasn’t cleared to practice this past week. Eagles coach Chip Kelly said he didn’t know when Foles would be examined again, but it’s a good bet that’ll happen early this week.

Even if Foles is cleared to practice beginning Tuesday, he probably wouldn’t be ready to play against Dallas next Sunday. That leaves two regular season games, against Washington on Dec. 20 and the Giants on Dec. 28. That timeframe gets pushed back even further if Foles has to wait another week to practice.

If Sanchez plays well Sunday against Seattle and again against the Cowboys, there would be no reason for Kelly to switch back to Foles, anyway.

After all, Sanchez is 3-1 so far as a starter, with a 63.4 percent completion percentage, which is higher than Foles’, who was at 59.8 percent through eight games. Sanchez has a quarterback rating of 89.3, again higher than Foles at 81.4.

Some of that might be because Sanchez isn’t throwing deep as much as Foles did, thus enabling him to complete more higher-percentage shorter and intermediate passes. But Kelly discounted this.

“I just think it’s the games and how they express themselves,” Kelly said. “But (Sanchez) has made those throws. The first throw of his career here, he came off the bench and threw a (52)-yarder on a post for a big play to (Jeremy Maclin).”

Other than that, there isn’t much difference. Both have struggled with turnovers this season. Foles had 13 touchdown passes against eight interceptions and two lost fumbles in eight games. Sanchez has 8 TDs, 6 INTs and two lost fumbles in five games.

Kelly’s modus operandi, when asked about his quarterback situation, has been to say that he doesn’t have to make a decision because the injured quarterback isn’t healthy. He did this a few weeks ago. And he did it last season when Michael Vick was out with a strained hamstring and Foles was performing well in his place. Kelly finally made the decision to stick with Foles when it was clear that Vick was ready to return.

That was an obvious decision, as Foles was in the midst of throwing for 27 touchdowns against just 2 interceptions.

It’s not so obvious now.

The only precedent in recent Eagles history came in 2002 when Donovan McNabb broke his ankle against Arizona on Nov. 17. McNabb missed the rest of the regular season.

The Eagles went 5-1 under his backups — first Koy Detmer and then A.J. Feeley — and got a first-round playoff bye.

But there was no talk about McNabb losing his job. Sure enough, when the playoffs started, McNabb was back at quarterback. The Eagles won the first game but lost in the NFC Championship game to Tampa Bay.

The decision was easy because McNabb was a Pro Bowl quarterback at the top of his game while Detmer and Feeley were backups at best. McNabb was considered the franchise quarterback as the No. 2 overall pick in 1999 by previous coach Andy Reid. Their futures were tied together.

Foles doesn’t have the pedigree that McNabb did. Kelly didn’t draft Foles, and he has never committed to him as the franchise quarterback, even after Foles’ success last season.

Sanchez is also much more accomplished than McNabb’s backups were. He has four full seasons as a starter under his belt with the New York Jets. Twice, he helped them reach the AFC Championship game. He has the playoff experience that even Foles lacks.

So there’s no obligation for Kelly to go back to Foles. And the longer it takes for Foles to heal, there would be no reason to.